The IDF had opened a dialogue with the ship's captain after it set sail from Greece and kept offering for the boat to return without being stopped.
IDF Chief of Staff Benny Gantz ordered the Israel Navy on Tuesday to intercept the French boat Dignite-Al Karame after it had refused instructions to stop sailing toward the Gaza shore. IDF naval commandos boarded the boat and met with no resistance.
The IDF had opened a dialogue with the ship's captain after it set sail from Greece and kept offering for the boat to return without being stopped. The repeated requests were ignored.
The IDF said that there were 16 people aborad including an Al Jazeera TV crew and a French member of parliament. The ship was taken to Ashdod Port.
Published by Globes, Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on July 19, 2011
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